THE devastated North Wales cattleman at the centre of a bovine TB outbreak last night described how the killer disease was squeezing the lifeblood from his farm.

Dafydd Parry has suffered a second heartbreak after his TB-infected Anglesey herd failed to get a clean bill of health.

New tests have revealed two animals still have the disease, leaving him facing an extended ban on moving his livestock.

It comes as Countryside Minister Carwyn Jones said yesterday selective badger culls to control cattle TB in Wales could not be ruled out.

Mr Parry, a widower who has brought his three daughters up on his own, said TB had his tenanted farm at Ynys Bach, Llannerchymedd, in a "stranglehold".

He has already lost thousands of pounds and may now have to change his farming system to save his business.

Mr Parry, 57, has also had to live with the stigma of the disease - he has refused to visit other farms on the island in case anyone points an accusing finger at him.

And he revealed he has been forced to undergo TB skin tests at Ysbty Gwyn-edd, Bangor, to check he has not caught the disease from his cattle.

He said: "What's frustrating me is that I'm powerless to do anything about the outbreak. The disease has a stranglehold over the business.

"In many ways it's much worse than foot-and-mouth. At least then you were paid a fair price for your animals and you could restock at your own pace after six months or so."

Last September, 20 animals at Ynys Bach gave positive reactions to skin tests. Six were slaughtered and TB was confirmed in five.

Vets wanted to cull the remaining affected animals immediately but Mr Parry refused, appalled by the compensation on offer. Eventually they agreed a deal involving the calves as well as the affected cows.

Mr Parry said: "I stopped them in their tracks. I wasn't prepared to be trampled on so I threatened to get an injunction to stop them taking the animals."

It is a mystery how the disease got into the herd, which was tested in October 2002 and given the all-clear.

There are few badgers on the island and Mr Parry breeds his own replacements so doesn't buy in much stock.

The last animal brought on to the farm - a calf from a neighbouring farm - was in 2002 and Ynys Bach is effectively a closed herd.

Unable to sell 50 store cattle, Mr Parry can now only watch helplessly as money drains from his business. He must pay for extra feed and wait for the herd to be tested again every two months. Only after two clear tests can it be given the all-clear.

The Countryside Minister said a decision whether to proceed with badger culling could hinge on the outcome of trials in Ireland, about to end.

Interim results suggest the culls are effective in controlling the killer disease.

Bovine TB is threatening to run out of control in Wales with rates of infection soaring 19pc-a-year.

The disease, one of the most feared by farmers, is expected to cost the Assembly #9m this year and Mr Jones said doing nothing was not an option.

He said: "It's burning a hole in my pocket. But while in my mind there's no question of there being no link between badgers and cattle, a cull is not the simple answer.

"Unlike foot-and-mouth, there is a large wildlife reservoir of TB, in animals such as deer as well as badgers, so tackling this disease is much more complicated."

Mr Jones was speaking at yesterday's launch of new UK-wide consultations on the proposed GB-wide strategy on Bovine Tuberculosis.

The nine-week consultation will run alongside an Assembly inquiry which was begun by the Environment, Planning and Countryside Committee last week.